There is an increasing need to be able to provide novel water ice products. In particular it is desirable to be able to provide products having a novel appearance and/or texture.
It is especially desirable to be able to provide a water ice that has a low calorific content and yet is of a relatively soft texture. Such a water ice has the advantage of being particularly refreshing.
However, if a low calorie containing water ice is manufactured in the conventional way a very hard block of ice is achieved which is not acceptable to the consumer when eaten at typical freezer temperatures.
Products which have been aerated by soluble gases such as carbon dioxide and/or nitrous oxide have been disclosed in the literature. Examples are U.S. Pat. No. 3,969,531 and JP 80017708.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,969,531 (Cornelius) discloses a process whereby a water and orange juice mixture is aerated with nitrous oxide gas to form a semi frozen comestible.
JP 80013708 discloses a granular frozen drink that may be drunk through a straw. A syrup is mixed with the water and carbon dioxide within a machine for manufacturing a frozen drink such that a carbon dioxide gas is located among the frozen material.
U.S. Pat. No. 4 826 656 describes a smooth textured soft frozen water ice with a solids content of 18-26% wt and an over-run of between 25-70% using air, where the water ice contains 0.05-0.5% wt of a stabilising mixture.
GB 915,389 describes a fat-free ice-cream containing dispersed air or gas so that it is easily cut or bitten when cold.
However we have found that such products have stability problems such that they cannot be further processed, for example they can be difficult to extrude, and also they are not storage stable at -18.degree. C.
We have solved the above problems and are able to provide a stable water ice product having a channelled porous structure.